In the competitive market of telecommunication services, a customer may desire to augment his or her conventional telecommunication service with additional advanced services. Generally, an advanced service is a service that provides features or functions that are not usually provided within the local switching system. One particularly desirable advanced service is caller identification, commonly referred to as Caller ID. Presently, Caller ID service provides information about who is calling and/or the caller's phone number to the customer's phone between the first and second ring and requires that the customer's phone ring. Thus, the current system requires that the phone call be completed. It would be desirable to provide a system of caller identification service that captures caller identification data even if the customer's phone is busy, captures one hundred percent of incoming calls and operates independent of the state of the customer's line. It would also be desirable to provide customers with caller identification service on a remote and/or temporary basis.
Advanced services are relatively complex, require coordination of multiple systems and are typically implemented through the use of data communications between or among network elements. Presently, to obtain advanced services, the customer must have a predefined relationship with a telecommunication service provider. A predefined relationship is required whether the telecommunication services are switch-based or whether the telecommunication services are provided by an AIN. In a switch-based system, the predefined relationship is a requirement because many services for a customer are implemented directly at the switch that serves the customer's calling line. More particularly, in a switch-based system, a block of information with respect to a customer's services is stored in the switch that serves the customer's calling line. This block of information is stored in the switch because of administration, control and billing reasons. Thus, for a customer to obtain a service, the customer has to contact the service provider to pre-register for the service. The service provider then takes steps to specially and individually configure the block of information required to enable the customer's services in the switch that serves the customer's calling line. Thus, in a switch-based system, the predefined relationship between the customer and service provider provides that the switch serving the customer's calling line include a block of information relating to the services of the customer.
In an AIN, the predefined relationship between the customer and a service provider is also a requirement for advanced services, but for different reasons than in the switch-based system. In contrast to a switch-based system, in an AIN, information with respect to the advanced services of a customer is not stored directly at the switch that serves the. customer's calling line. Rather, in an AIN, information with respect to a customer's advanced services is generally stored at an AIN element other than the Service Switching Point (SSP) which serves as or in conjunction with a switch in the AIN. Usually, the AIN element that stores the information is a centralized AIN element such as a Service Control Point (SCP) that may be accessed via data communications by multiple SSPs. Typically, such information is stored in a database or a table associated with a Service Package Application (SPA) that may be located at the SCP. The SCP may be queried via a data communication by an SSP for processing instructions with respect to the implementation of advanced services for a communication to or from a customer's calling line that is served by the SSP. Upon receipt of the query, the SCP consults the appropriate databases or the appropriate tables and provides a response via another data communication to the SSP. This response includes processing instructions that are carried out by the SSP. In some cases, a Service Circuit Node (SCN) may be consulted by the SCP or otherwise used in providing the advanced services.
Thus, in an AIN, the predefined relationship between the customer and the service provider provides that an SCP include an entry of information relating to advanced service to the customer. Also in an AIN, the predefined relationship between the customer and the service provider provides for the appropriate mechanisms to reach the entry of information relating to the advanced service to the customer. These mechanisms operate such that an SSP that serves a customer's calling line having advanced services queries via data communication the appropriate SCP for call processing instructions. The SSP then carries out the instructions received in a response via data communication from the SCP.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram that is used to illustrate the steps that are presently taken in order to bring about the predefined relationship between a customer and a service provider in an AIN. As noted, the predefined relationship must exist in order to presently obtain advanced services in an AIN. Customer 1, who desires to obtain an advanced service, contacts a sales/service representative 2 of the customer's telecommunication service provider. The sales/service representative 2 engages the customer in a dialogue and obtains information from the customer with respect to advanced services. The sales/service representative 2 then enters this information into a service order system 3. The service order system 3 accesses the information to derive further information with respect to billing issues, to set up an entry of information with respect to the customer's advanced service, and to provide for the appropriate mechanisms to reach the entry of information.
From the service order system 3, the appropriate information or instructions based thereon are distributed as appropriate to a billing system 4, a Service Management System (SMS) 5, and a Mechanized Administration and Recent Change (MARCH) 6. The billing system 4 uses the information or instructions to set up and carry out billing to the customer for the advanced service. The SMS 5 distributes the information or instructions as appropriate to a Service Circuit Node (SCN) 7 and/or a Service Control Point (SCP) 8. The information is incorporated as an entry of information relating to the advanced service to the customer. Typically, this entry of information is stored in a database or a table associated with an appropriate Service Package Application (SPA). As noted above, this entry of information is part of the predefined relationship between the customer and the service provider. The MARCH 6 also further distributes the information or instructions, but the MARCH 6 distributes the information or instructions to an appropriate SSP 9 so that the appropriate mechanisms are set up at the SSP 9 to enable the SSP 9 to communicate with the SCP 8 and obtain instructions based on the entry of information. As also noted above, these appropriate mechanisms are part of the predefined relationship between the customer and the service provider.
The manner of establishing the requisite predefined relationship with a customer in a switch-based system or an AIN has posed problems to telecommunication service providers. One problem is that a customer is unable to obtain an advanced service without the execution of the lengthy and complex procedures described above that are necessary to set up a predefined relationship. These lengthy and complex procedures preclude a customer from directly setting up his or her own advanced services. These lengthy and complex procedures also preclude the short term implementation or "rental" of advanced services. In addition, these lengthy and complex procedures preclude the implementation of advanced services on short notice. In other words, it is generally impossible to be a "walk-up" customer of advanced services. Thus, it would be desirable to provide a system of providing caller identification services that facilitate the provision of temporary and/or remote caller identification services on short notice.
With respect to switch-based systems, a solution to the problems of allowing a customer to directly set up his or her own switch services, of renting these services for a short term, and of implementing them on short notice has been proposed. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,544,236 to Andruska et al. As noted above, in a switch-based system, a block of information with respect to a customer's advanced services is stored in the switch that serves the customer's calling line. Andruska et al describes a feature processor as part of the local switching system for use in connection with this block of information in the switch. In response to a call from a customer, the feature processor may be used to effectively change the block of information relating to the customer's service map that is stored in the switch.
The solution proposed by Andruska et al. does not solve the problem of the lengthy and complex procedures for the set up of a predefined relationship in a switch-based system. Andruska et al. does not solve this problem because Andruska et al. does not address the problem of creating a predefined relationship. In Andruska et al., in order for a customer to access the feature processor to set up or change advanced services, the customer has to already have a predefined relationship and associated data block with the service provider. In other words, the block of information with respect to the customer must be present in order for Andruska et al.'s system to work to set or change the services available. Andruska et al. does not provide for the establishment of the predefined relationship, but rather, supplements a predefined relationship that is already in existence.
Further, Andruska et al. does not present any solution for an AIN. As noted, Andruska et al. does not solve the problem of the lengthy and complex procedures for the set up of an AIN service. In addition, Andruska et al. does not present any solution for an AIN because Andruska et al. is directed to a switch-based system. Thus, the solution offered by Andruska et al. is inapplicable to an AIN.
More particularly explained, as noted above, the differences between switch-based system and an AIN result in differences in the type of redefined relationship that must be established with a customer in order to provide services. In an AIN, the predefined relationship requires an entry of information relating to the advanced service of the customer in a centralized AIN element such as an SCP that may be accessed via data communications by multiple SSPs. Andruska et al.'s proposed solution works on the premise that the block of information relating to a customer's advanced services is stored in the switch serving the customer's calling line. Thus, Andruska et al.'s proposed solution is inapplicable to an AIN.
In addition, in an AIN, the predefined relationship also requires that appropriate mechanisms be set up so that the entry of information relating to the advanced service of the customer that are stored in the centralized AIN element may be accessed from an SSP. As noted, Andruska et al.'s proposed solution works on the premise that the block of information relating to a customer's services is stored in the switch serving the customer's calling line and merely toggles access to preexisting services. There is no need in Andruska et al.'s proposed solution for a mechanism to reach an entry of information that is stored in a different element that must be accessed from the switch. Andruska et al.'s proposed solution does not disclose such a mechanism. Thus, Andruska et al.'s proposed solution is inapplicable to an AIN.
The problems faced in an AIN have not been solved with respect to the activities of customer selection and activation of advanced services, delivery of short term or rental of advanced services, and implementation of such advanced services on short notice. They have not been solved because the manner in which the predefined relationship must be established between a customer and a service provider precludes these activities. In particular, the manner in which an entry of information for a customer in a centralized AIN element is set up and the manner in which mechanisms are set up to access that entry of information have been stumbling blocks to the referenced activities.
As noted, the first of these stumbling blocks is the manner in which an entry of information is set up for a customer in a centralized AIN element. This task has been a stumbling block for several reasons. As explained above in connection with FIG. 1, presently in an AIN, the entry of information for a customer is accomplished by the following several steps. These steps include the receipt of information by the sales/service representative 2, input of such information into the service order system 3, transmission of the information to the Service Management System (SMS) 5, and then finally further distribution of the information to a Service Circuit Node 7 or Service Control Point 8. Although this process is necessary, it is a process that requires human intervention through the use of a sales/service representative, takes a relatively long time, includes quite a few steps, and otherwise generally slows down the implementation of advanced services for a customer.
Although this process of providing an entry of information at the centralized AIN element is lengthy, the entry of information is limited to information relating to the particular advanced service to be provided to the customer. This entry of information does not correlate the customer and their directory number (calling line) to any particular Service Switching Point (SSP) or other AIN element that serves the customer. Further, neither the SCP nor the SCN maintains any type of correlation table or database between customers' calling lines and the respective SSPs serving the calling lines. In other words, an SCP does not know which SSP serves which customer's calling line. When providing an SSP with processing instructions in response to a query, the SCP addresses the response based on information that is included in the query. The query/response exchange defines the relationship in communications between the SSP and the SCP. The SCP does not otherwise keep any correlative information between a customer's calling line and its serving SSP.
This lack of correlative information at the SCP is another problem in delivering customer selection and activation of advanced services, the rental of advanced services, and the implementation of advanced services on short notice. An entry of information may be provided at the SCP, but unless the SCP receives a query from the SSP serving the customer's line, it is unable to initiate a service without knowing which SSP to contact. Without this correlation, advanced services may not be applied to the customer's calling line because these advanced services are enabled through the SSP serving the customer's calling line. In other words, the SCP may have an entry of information for a customer that provides instructions for advanced services, but the SCP does not itself have any information with respect to a place to send the instructions relating to the enablement of the advanced services. This is a problem because the customer does not receive his or her desired advanced services.
Further, the lack of correlative information at a centralized AIN element such as an SCP or an SCN between the customers' calling lines and the respective SSPs that serve these calling lines is not a problem in a switch-based system. As explained above, in a switch-based system, a block of information with respect to a customer's services is stored in the switch that serves the customer's calling line. No other element generally is consulted with respect to the implementation of services for a customer's calling line other than the switch serving the calling line. Thus, there is no need for keeping track of which switch serves which calling lines in a switch-based system.
As referenced briefly above, there is at least one other stumbling block to the provision of customer selection and activation of advanced services, delivery of short term or rental of advanced services, and implementation of such advanced services on short notice. This stumbling block is the manner in which mechanisms are set up to access the entry information relating to a customer that is stored in a centralized AIN element from an SSP. This task also has been a stumbling block for several reasons. As explained above in connection with FIG. 1, presently in the AIN, the appropriate mechanisms necessary to reach the entry of information at the SCN or the SCP are set up through parallel steps to the storage of the entry of information. The mechanisms are set up generally through a series of steps. These steps include the receipt of the information by the sales/service representative 2, input of such information into the service order system 3, transmission of the information to MARCH provisional system 6, and then finally further distribution of the information to an appropriate Service Switching Point (SSP) 9.
This task of providing mechanisms is important because without mechanisms at the appropriate SSP to provide access to the entry of information relating to the customer, there is no link then between the customer's calling line and the entry of information stored in the centralized AIN element. As noted above, neither the SCP nor the SCN maintains any type of correlation table or database between customer's calling lines and the respective SSPs serving the calling lines. Thus, these mechanisms are the only link between the SSP serving a customer's calling line and the instructions that are contained in the entry of information in the centralized AIN element that pertain to the implementation of advanced services with respect to a customer's calling line. Although the mechanisms are necessary, the manner in which these mechanisms are set up presently requires human intervention through the use of a sales/service representative, takes a relatively long time, includes quite a few steps, and otherwise generally slows down the implementation of advanced services for a customer.
One advanced service that is not presently available on a temporary basis is a temporary caller identification service, including, but not limited to, a caller identification system, preferably an audible caller identification system, that audibly announces the number and/or name associated with an incoming call. For example, a customer may desire to ascertain the number and/or name associated with incoming calls to the customer's calling line. In the prior art, a customer was required to purchase and install caller identification equipment and was limited by the location of the equipment. Thus, the caller needed to purchase and install in advance caller identification equipment for the customer's calling.
Accordingly, there is a need for a method and a system that provides for the provision of customer selection and the activation of caller identification services, delivery of short term or rental of caller identification services, and implementation of such caller identification services on short notice in an Advanced Intelligent Network (AIN).
There is also a need for a method and a system that provides for the application of caller identification services in an AIN to a customer's directory number or calling line without the necessity of the customer having a predefined relationship with a telecommunication service provider with respect to the caller identification services.
There is an additional need for a method and a system that provides for the application of caller identification services in an AIN to a customer's directory number or calling line without the necessity of a service representative carrying out administrative tasks with respect to the customer.
There is yet another need for a method and a system that provides caller identification services while the customer is on the phone line, does not require that the phone ring and desirably captures and identifies all incoming calls.
In addition, there is a need for a method and a system that provides for the entry of information relating to a customer's caller identification services in a centralized AIN element in a manner that avoids human intervention by a sales/service representative, that is accomplished quickly with few steps, and that minimally impedes the implementation of caller identification services for a customer.
Also, there is a need for a method and a system that provides for caller identification services to a customer without requiring the purchase, rental or installation of caller identification equipment by the customer.